The welfare agency should also be ordered to pay compensation for the three cancer cases, the umbrella group composed of labor, human rights and political activists demanded.
As of March this year, Banollim has received a total of 46 reports of deaths and scores of other cases of life-threatening illnesses among former Samsung employees at its high-tech plants. The group members, including an occupational health physician and a labor attorney, suspect poor work environment has been the main culprit.
Legal action has been sought for some of the cases, but some dropped their cases after Samsung offered hundreds of millions of won in settlement, the activists claimed.
Still, the court ruling marks a watershed that puts at least some additional pressure on the conglomerate whose fortune is often associated with that of the country, observers here say.
Many predict similar compensation claims and lawsuits will follow, with Banollim activists vowing to further organize more supposed victims.
For its part, Samsung Electronics has taken steps in recent years to fend off criticism that it is not protecting rights of its workers the company likes to call "another family" in its advertisement campaign.
Last year, the company opened up one of its otherwise closely guarded memory chip lines to media for the first time in an attempt to put the controversy to rest.
Two previous studies found no plausible link between working conditions at Samsung plants and reported deaths and illnesses of employees. Former labor minister Bahk Jae-wan also publicly stated the alleged link did not seem "statistically significant."
The chip giant, meanwhile, is set to unveil findings of a new independent probe into health and safety conditions at its plants following Thursday's court verdict.
Samsung will make efforts to shed light on its working environment in upcoming trials, the company said in a statement, hinting it would appeal the court decision. "The health and well- being of our employees is and will remain the top priority for Samsung," it said.Source:Xinhua
As of March this year, Banollim has received a total of 46 reports of deaths and scores of other cases of life-threatening illnesses among former Samsung employees at its high-tech plants. The group members, including an occupational health physician and a labor attorney, suspect poor work environment has been the main culprit.
Legal action has been sought for some of the cases, but some dropped their cases after Samsung offered hundreds of millions of won in settlement, the activists claimed.
Still, the court ruling marks a watershed that puts at least some additional pressure on the conglomerate whose fortune is often associated with that of the country, observers here say.
Many predict similar compensation claims and lawsuits will follow, with Banollim activists vowing to further organize more supposed victims.
For its part, Samsung Electronics has taken steps in recent years to fend off criticism that it is not protecting rights of its workers the company likes to call "another family" in its advertisement campaign.
Last year, the company opened up one of its otherwise closely guarded memory chip lines to media for the first time in an attempt to put the controversy to rest.
Two previous studies found no plausible link between working conditions at Samsung plants and reported deaths and illnesses of employees. Former labor minister Bahk Jae-wan also publicly stated the alleged link did not seem "statistically significant."
The chip giant, meanwhile, is set to unveil findings of a new independent probe into health and safety conditions at its plants following Thursday's court verdict.
Samsung will make efforts to shed light on its working environment in upcoming trials, the company said in a statement, hinting it would appeal the court decision. "The health and well- being of our employees is and will remain the top priority for Samsung," it said.Source:Xinhua
